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Autism Vox

July 19th, 2008

Extreme Special Ed (Surfing Board Not Optional)

That’s how professional surfer Izzy Paskowitz describes Surfers Healing, the one-day surf camps for autistic children that he’s been holding for over a decade all over the US. Paskowitz’s own 17-year-old son, Isaiah, is autistic and there’s no place like the water for him. The Daily Yomiuri reports that families are starting to come from […]

By Kristina Chew, PhD -- 4 comments

June 18th, 2008

Kendall Bailey, Paralympics Swimmer

Kendall Bailey is 19 years old, 6 foot 6, and a champion swimmer headed for the Paralympics in Beijing this September—–but he was almost rendered ineligible by the United States itself. Bailey has cerebral palsy, mental retardation, autism, and Klinefelter’s syndrome, which prevents his body from producing testosterone. Today’s New York Times profiles his dream […]

By Kristina Chew, PhD -- 3 comments

June 17th, 2008

Aces For Autism

Two brothers, Jack and James Collier of Gastonia, North Carolina, created Aces for Autism, a week-long tennis clinic for autistic children. They came up with the idea in honor of their 12-year-old sister, Oliver. From the Gaston Gazette:
“There aren’t really a whole lot of sports opportunities for kids with autism,” said James, 15. “Olivia loves […]

By Kristina Chew, PhD -- 5 comments

June 5th, 2008

Boy Dies During Nap, Possibly From Secondary Drowning

10-year-old Johnny Jackson died last week while taking a nap in his house from “asphyxiation due to drowning”—-according to today’s ABC News, Johnny may have died from secondary drowning. Johnny, who had attention deficit disorder and autism, had been playing in the neighborhood pool for about 45 minutes. He was wearing flotation devices on his […]

By Kristina Chew, PhD -- 15 comments

June 5th, 2008

In Search of Swim Time

Last year I more than once expressed my frustration about getting Charlie time to swim in the pool at our YMCA. For reasons that you can read about here, Charlie has not been able to swim in the “big pool” at the hours when we can go (late afternoon/early evening). Our YMCA does have a […]

By Kristina Chew, PhD -- 6 comments

June 1st, 2008

A Member of the (Wrestling) Team

As a freshman at Leominster High School in Massachusetts, Michael Comeau joined the wrestling team. An article in today’s Sentinel and Enterprise notes that being on the team has helped Comeau—who was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome at the age of 12—to develop social skills. (And to learn to take down a teammate on the mat.) […]

By Kristina Chew, PhD -- 5 comments

May 31st, 2008

Climb Every Wall

Charlie used to have the urge to climb and no windowsill, table, back of the couch, dresser, or the top of the piano did not bear the imprint of his bare feet. I was always worried that his next Everest would be the top of the book shelves but he never attempted those (though everything […]

By Kristina Chew, PhD -- 4 comments

May 28th, 2008

A Healthy Mind in a Healthy Body

I always make sure now that daily Adapted Physical Education (APE) is written into Charlie’s IEP. Around 10.30am every morning he does “fitness” (calisthetics and walking/running), soccer, bowling, yoga (his favorite) and other activities; his PE teacher is trained to teach autistic special needs kids. In previous schools he had PE maybe once a week […]

By Kristina Chew, PhD -- 7 comments

May 22nd, 2008

It’s Ok to be Disabled Until—-

We all root for amputees—-until they win medals is the blurb on an article by William Saletan in the May 21st Slate. Saletan writes about Oscar Pistorius, the runner from South Africa who—he is a double amputee—runs on specially built prostheses called “cheetahs” ( j-shapes blades made of carbon fiber). Pistorius recently won a decision […]

By Kristina Chew, PhD -- 17 comments

May 12th, 2008

Shooting Straight

Thanks to autism, 15-year-old Kyle Cramer of Coburg, Oregon, is aiming to compete in the Olympics in archery, KMTR reports:
Kyle has captured state and national championships, setting records along the way. Autism no longer holds him back, but helps him to achieve.
Wayne Endicott, owner of the Bow Rack Pro Shop says, “Kyle’s handicap becomes his […]

By Kristina Chew, PhD -- 6 comments

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